Coda: Filmstruck

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Tuesday, September 18

Streamathon - Urban Legends & Folklore

Streamathon - Urban Legends & Folklore

September 2018

Preface: This is part of an ongoing blog series of curated movie marathons that are thematically or otherwise tied together. The other common factor tying these films together will be their availability to watch them all from the comfort of your own home on various streaming platforms. The goal is that writing this blog will somehow justify the excessive number of streaming platforms I subscribe to. The films will be found on some combination of Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Mubi, FilmStruck, Shudder and/or Fandor. These titles will be available for the month that the blog is published. All of these subscriptions offer free trials so feel free to dive in and follow along… Have fun. Just don’t message me for my login information.

By: Emery Martin-Snyder

It’s less than a week away from The Coda Presents: CANDYMAN at The Filmbar in Downtown Phoenix, AZ. This is kind of a big deal for us over here at The Coda, so I decided that in honor of the occasion, we could all get in the mood with some selections to watch at home in fevered anticipation of the momentous event. The screening is dangerously close to selling out so if you haven’t yet, click the link above and get your tickets…. Like, right now… Then come back and watch these movies with me.

The Stream

CROPSEY (2010)

Directed by Joshua Zeman & Barbara Brancaccio – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video, Hulu & Shudder

The legend of Cropsey comes from Staten Island, NY. He was born out of the real-life terror of missing children and an abandoned mental institution in the middle of the woods. As a fictional legend, it pretty much writes itself. And that’s what is covered in the first fifteen minutes or so of this documentary. Then, luckily it is morphed into the true crime story of Andre Rand, the island’s most likely embodiment of the urban legend. It covers his trial and sentencing with a healthy balance of skepticism and realism, always connecting it to the larger-than-life story that terrified the community for decades.

Side note: Director Zeman’s follow up film, KILLER LEGENDS (2014) is also available to stream on Hulu. It is an anthology of other urban legends involving murderers, some of which have been immortalized in other films on this list. It’s not bad, but you don’t get even as much information about the stories he covers as you would from Wikipedia, so I didn’t think it was good enough for my list.

INCIDENT AT LOCH NESS (20044)

Directed by Zak Penn – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

This movie is kind of a weird one for me to watch, specifically because of Zak Penn. I’ve never been much of a fan of Penn’s work. He does a lot of script doctoring on some big blockbuster films. I’ve always sort of thought of him as the type that comes in and revamps a story to dumb it down and make it more palatable for mass consumption. This is odd because for this movie, which he directed and co-wrote, he seems to be playing an archetypical version of himself that I’ve always suspected that he sort of actually is. It’s that type of self-deprecating portrayal that works well for me. And of course, there’s Werner Herzog who co-wrote and co-starred with him to provide the type of integral weight that steers the narrative perfectly.

KURONEKO (1968)

Directed by Kaneto Shindō – Streaming on FilmStruck

In Japanese culture, a bakeneko is basically a ghost-cat. This folklore dates back hundreds of years and it’s pretty creepy. Now, imagine that tale being used to tell a medieval rape revenge story. Shindō’s 1968 film does just that. It’s shot beautifully in low light black-and-white with a hauntingly moody score. This one’s is really all about tone. I won’t say too much about it. Just be forewarned, the opening scene always seem to catch me off guard with how vile and disturbing it is.

THE PHANTOM CARRIAGE (1921)

Directed by Victor Sjöström – Streaming on FilmStruck

In case you didn’t know, if you are a very sinful person and you happen to be the last person to die in any given year, your sentence is to spend the following year driving all those unfortunate souls to their final resting place in the “Phantom Carriage.” At least that is legend explored in this 97-year-old Swedish film. It is an adaptation of the novel, “Thy Soul Shall Bear Witness!” by Selma Lagerlöf that was actually intended as a sort of public service to warn people of the dangers of tuberculosis. She incorporated the fable of Ankou, a hodgepodge of different European depictions of Death from the Dark-Ages. From a technical standpoint, this film was far ahead of its time. It’s not the first time that double-exposure had been done. But it was never done with a technique this complex and time consuming before. The results were captivating to audiences of the time. The special effects gave the illusion that characters were semi-transparent and at times, occupying two spaces at once. To have captured these images with hand-cranked cameras is quite an impressive feat.

THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN (2014)

Directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

It’s unfortunate that the original 1976 flick is not available to stream from anywhere. On a whim, I decided to watch this one out of sheer curiosity. I was more than pleasantly surprised. 2014 was at the tail end of the classic horror remake surge that has mostly worn out its welcome. I think this film unfortunately suffered from that fatigue and as a result was underseen. But I dig it quite a bit and if you skipped it due to its unfortunate timing, I would suggest you catch up with this. The killer in this legend is very unique among movie monsters. He is purely human. Although vicious, there is not even an inkling of supernatural ability in him. This is even more true in this updated version of the story. He has speaking parts here. Which as I recall, differs from the original. And it's not some scary distorted 'Jigsaw' type voice. He speaks in a regional accent. I found this to keep him and his legend grounded in a version of reality that rarely exists in works like this.

This is less of a remake and more a reboot/meta-sequel. It’s not retelling the original story. Rather, it incorporates the town’s history and tradition with both the actual murders that took place in 1946 as well as the original film that was released in 1976. This is interesting as a plot in itself but even more exciting in how it allowed post-modern stylistic choices in editing and narrative. For example, after one kill scene, the camera pans the aftermath of the location revealing at the end of the shot that we are actually watching a behind-the-scenes take from the original movie.

Secondly, cinematography is paramount in genre films, especially action and horror. This one’s camerawork is excellent. Cinematographer Michael Goi utilizes smaller lightweight cameras to get a lot of great P.O.V. and various rig shots that respect the spatial relationship of the characters and settings. And the color palette is gorgeous as well as reverent for both the setting and the original Charles B. Pierce film. The ending of this is both unfortunate and disappointing. It’s discombobulated and even a bit anticlimactic. But alas, I’m not one to throw the slasher baby out with the bloody bathwater. It deserves to be seen.

THE TAG-ALONG (2015)

Directed by Cheng Wei-Hao – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

This is Taiwan’s most profitable horror film of all time. Its titular character is the manifestation of a relatively new urban legend commonly referred to as, ‘the little girl in red’. As far as I can tell, it all started in 1998 when a family went hiking in the Taichung mountains. They documented their trip on a camcorder and were shocked later, to see what looks like a creepy little girl that no one remembered following them on the trail. When the family experienced an unexpected death, the legend took off. More sightings and disturbing anecdotes would abound in the years to follow.

I’m sure that the popularity of the legend itself helped this film immensely at the box office. That being said, I still think the atmosphere is eerie and well put together. I could be the thousandth person to complain about the bad CGI but I always tend to be forgiving of that stuff in favor of empathetic characters and good tension building.

WILLOW CREEK (2013)

Directed by Bobcat Goldthwait – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

This film has problems, but I still defend it. I don’t think that it needed to spend as much time as it did meandering around the first act and a half. But then, if you have the patience, you get to the tent scene. It’s a long single static shot that lasts around twenty minutes and leads into the climax. This shot, dimly lit inside a tent, gets underneath your fingernails as it exploits you most anxious empathy. The final act brings it home and makes this piece well worthwhile.

Sunday, August 5

Streamathon - Dual Roles

Streamathon - Dual Roles

Dual Roles (August 2018)

By: Emery Martin-Snyder

Peter Sellers played three different and very distinct characters in Stanley Kubrick’s DR STRANGELOVE (’64). Each role a little more fun than the last. The first time I watched David Fincher’s THE SOCIAL NETWORK (2010), I had no idea that both Winklevoss twins were played by the same Armie Hammer. In a lesser known dual role, Trevor Mathews plays both the titular character as well as “Forest Troll” in Jon Knautz’s 2007 film JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER.

But my favorite dual performance of all time is probably still Nicolas Cage’s Charlie & Donald Kaufman in Spike Jonze’s ADAPTATION (2002). Cage has an uncanny habit of showing up and delivering amazing and unforgettable work about once or twice a decade in the midst of a whole lot of other…. well… stuff. This was one of those times. Or two of those times. The construct of the plot is already so bizarre that Cage’s unhinged acting fits perfectly.

But I digress, none of these films are available to stream at this moment. But these are.

The Stream

Eddie Murphy in BOWFINGER (1999)

Directed by Frank Oz – Streaming on Hulu

This is such a fun movie. Eddie Murphy plays Hollywood star, Kit Ramsey. Steve Martin is Bobby Bowfinger, a down-on-his-luck filmmaker desperate for a hit. But, with no shot at landing a deal with Kit, Bobby settles for a combination of ridiculous guerilla filmmaking tactics and a Kit Ramsey lookalike “Jiff”, also played by Murphy.

This was a strange time in Murphy’s career. He spent most of the latter half of the nineties reinventing himself as a much more kid friendly star with starring roles in the NUTTY PROFESSOR and DR. DOLITTLE. Both would see sequels in the coming years, leading of course to his beloved, annoying and very lucrative role as the voice of “Donkey” in the SHREK films. BOWFINGER was somewhat of a return-to-form for him. It’s pretty raunchy for its PG-13 rating. It’s also hilarious. So, if you’re like me and you started to skip Murphy vehicles around ’95 and you lumped this one in with the rest, you would be wise to reconsider.

Bette Davis in DEAD RINGER (1964)

Directed by Paul Henreid – Streaming on FilmStruck

Margaret DeLorca isn’t the only character in this film with “Bette Davis Eyes.” That’s because Davis also plays her twin Edith Phillips who, after murdering Margaret, switches identities with her in order to live her sister’s lavish existence as a wealthy widow. Of course, after the deed is done, she finds that the grass may have only appeared greener. As it turns out, Margaret had her own slew of problems to deal with. Problems that are now the responsibility of Edith.

Jeremy Irons in DEAD RINGERS (1988)

Directed by David Cronenberg – Streaming on Shudder

This has long existed in my mind as somewhat ‘middle-of-the-road’ Cronenberg for some reason. But after rewatching it for this post, I can’t really say why. It is far better than I remembered. Irons’ performance(s) here is key. He plays identical twins Beverly and Elliot Mantle who, for various sinister and diabolical reasons, switch places with each other from time to time. And although the supporting characters are often in the dark, we the audience are always clued into which brother is which by Irons’ specific quirks and demeanors.

In more recent years, Cronenberg has told stories like A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE (’05), EASTERN PROMISES (’08) and MAPS TO THE STARS (’15) that explore self-identity issues. Now, thirty years removed, it’s easy to see DEAD RINGERS as a precursor of what the word ‘Cronenbergian’ would come to mean. And of course, it comes with a healthy dose of the body horror we’ve all come to love and appreciate from him.

Jake Gyllenhaal in ENEMY (2013)

Directed by Denis Villeneuve – Streaming on Netflix

Villeneuve is a director that I have been getting more and more excited about with every film. And although I wouldn’t put this one up there with his best works, it is fascinating and definitely worth a watch. It’s basically a tense build up to a gimmick with a bit of unexplained weirdness to garnish. It’s shot beautifully by Nicolas Bolduc and Gyllenhaal seems to have a lot of fun with his two tonally opposite performances.

Sam Rockwell in MOON (2009)

Directed by Duncan Jones – Streaming on Netflix

I absolutely adore this film. Although it’s probably best to keep its twisty ending unspoiled, I think there is so much more to this than the ending. Put simply, what are the moral and psychological implications of playing God? Sam Rockwell is one of the most underrated actors working today and this is one film manages to showcase many of his best performances. The screenplay and overall pacing is flawless as well. And when it comes to thought provoking sci-fi you won’t do much better than a Clint Mansell score.

Lauren Ashley Carter in IMITATION GIRL (2017)

Directed by Natasha Kermani – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

This was the best and most memorable performance I saw at this year’s International Horror & Sci-Fi Festival. It’s a gem of a cerebral sci-fi in the same vein as Jonathan Glazer’s UNDER THE SKIN (2013) but with a smaller scope. This is the type of thing I get excited about during festival season. It may not be too likely to a gain a lot of critical acclaim. But every piece of this film, especially Carter’s performance is beholden to the vision of the director. And for that reason, I’ll be sure to keep an eye out for future work from Kermani.

Margot Kidder in SISTERS (1972)

Directed by Brian De Palma – Streaming on FilmStruck

The world of cinema lost one of our greats earlier this year. And although she was best known as Lois Lane in the Richard Donner SUPERMAN films, I will always think of her first for her work in this film. Brian De Palma was my first favorite director. As a budding young cinephile in the early nineties, I took special note of how he constructed the suspenseful scenes in his films like THE UNTOUCHABLES, CARLITO’S WAY and MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE. I didn’t realize at the time that what I was actually watching was an homage and emulation of Hitchcock.

Friday, June 8

Streamathon - Seeking Refuge

Streamathon - Seeking Refuge

Seeking Refuge (June 2018)

By: Emery Martin-Snyder

“No one leaves home unless home is the mouth of a shark…” – Warsan Shire

Humans have been roaming this planet for the last 200,000 years or so. With some minor exceptions, that is when mankind pretty much stopped evolving genetically and began evolving culturally. The practice of migration in search of a better life has been the largest contributor to that cultural evolution. And our ability to learn from the experiences and knowledge of others, fueling our own progress has always hinged on these migrations. This ability is what propelled us and has kept us at the top of the food chain.

Borders on the other hand, looked at in the proper context are a very radical and new idea. The first city-states didn’t even show up in our history until around 6,000 years ago. The Greeks and the Italians followed suit in the coming centuries but migration was not only still free back then, it was widely encouraged. People were seen as assets to the regions.

These city-states wouldn’t start forming into countries for hundreds of years. Borders of these early countries were typically geographical landmarks like rivers, oceans and mountain ranges. They were vague at best and more or less protected by the terrain itself. It wasn’t until around the end of the Middle Ages (16^th-17^th Century A.D.) that sovereign nations started to form as a way for land-grabbing monarchs to assume power. Even so, these borders were not used to restrict immigration of people but rather, to more clearly identify governmental jurisdictions.

In fact, the very concept of immigration law is quite new. Most European nations had no laws restricting immigration until the 20^th Century. The U.S. was a country with defined (and redefined) borders for over 100 years before they introduced the first legislation restricting immigration (Chinese Immigration Act of 1882). So if my math is correct, our species has been restricting the migration of people in search for a better life for about 0.1% of its entire existence.

I’m writing this because I think it’s important to frame it in these terms. This is what I think about when I hear politicians and pundits try to convince me that “A nation without borders is not a nation at all” or when they support legislation designed to significantly reduce and restrict immigration like the RAISE ACT. These are radical new and dangerous ideas. They are fueled by nationalism, xenophobia and other various forms of bigoted fear. They are restricting our ability to further our own cultural evolution and they have led to the biggest humanitarian crisis we have seen since the Dark Ages.

As a quote by 2^nd Century B.C. Roman playwright, Terence reads:

"Homo sum, humani nihil a me alienum puto." (I am human, and I think nothing human is alien to me.)

This maybe was better spoken by a more modern poet, Pogues front man Shane MacGowan (still alive surprisingly):

“People are talking about immigration, emigration and the rest of the fucking thing. It's all fucking crap. We're all human beings, we're all mammals, we're all rocks, plants, rivers. Fucking borders are just such a pain in the fucking arse.”

There are currently 65.5 million people seeking refuge.

The Stream

AN AMERICAN TALE(1986)

Directed by Don Bluth – Streaming on Netflix

Fievel Mousekewitz is pretty much the quintessential child immigrant; so much so that in 2000, he became the official “spokemouse” for UNICEF. He and his family fled the violent cats of Russia in the late 1800’s to start a new life in America. Unfortunately shortly after they arrive, a storm separates Fievel from the rest of his family (nowadays, the Federal government takes care of that for you). Also unfortunately, the Mousekewitz family seems to have somehow miscalculated the actual amount of cats in America.

This was one of those movies I had on VHS when I was young and probably watched it no less than 50 times. I just rewatched it for the first time in over 25 years... It turns out that I still know all the words to the songs.

BLIND SUN (2015)

Directed by Joyce A. Nashawati – Streaming on Shudder

This is a psychological slow-thrill about an immigrant house-sitting for a wealthy family in Greece. His isolation couples with constant reminders that he is at best, less than welcome in this country. This anxiety is exasperated by the blistering Greek sun. Anxiety escalates to paranoia, a paranoia that shows itself to be more and more justified as the story progresses. This film never really blooms into a full blown horror flick. I feel like it might have wanted to, but its overall message would have been lost.

DHEEPAN (2015)

Directed by Jacques Audiard – Streaming on Netflix

Dheepan is a former soldier in the Sri Lankan civil war seeking refuge in France under an assumed name. His new identity also came with a fake wife and daughter. Sadly, they quickly find out that things are tough all over as his new neighborhood turns out to be just a different type of war zone. This is a gripping and tense drama that builds towards a third act that is absolutely shocking.

LE HAVRE (2011)

Directed by Aki Kaurismäki – Streaming on FilmStruck

This is a semi-sequel to Kaurismäki’s Marcel Marx story that began in 1992 with LA VIE DE BOHÉME. He’s quit writing and relocated to Le Havre, Normandy to shine shoes and live quietly with his wife, Arletty. In his travels, he comes across Idrissa, a young African boy that is hiding from immigration. When Arletty takes ill and doesn’t seem to want his help, his new relationship provides him with the usefulness he seems to live for. Kaurismäki’s films are always quaint, even when the subject matter deserves more weight. This one is no exception. It also gets bonus points for a cameo from the French master of quirk, Pierre Etaix.

HUMAN FLOW (2017)

Directed by Ai Weiwei – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

Ai Weiwei documents the chains of migration across 23 different countries with multiple film crews. Among them, he visits France, Afghanistan, Iraq, Mexico and Greece. His cameras sweep through the masses of immigrants, giving the viewers only a glimpse of perspective available to percolate from a 140 minute runtime. Those perspectives range from overhead drone shots to personal interviews filled with gut-wrenching anecdotes. I think this film is a little more important than it is good. It’s a bit of a chore to watch but it probably does better than the rest to highlight the current refugee crisis our world faces.

EL NORTE (1983)

Directed by Gregory Nava – Streaming on FilmStruck

As a personal story, this is heartfelt, warm and very melancholy. But watching this with the full realization of how this story is actually typical is downright depressing. This is a unique film. I like how the story is a small and personal tale but the cinematography and score give this film the weight of a hero’s journey. There are precious few beloved eighties arthouse classics and this will always be one of them.

WHEN I SAW YOU (2012)

Directed by Annemarie Jacir – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

In 1967, after the 6 Day War the Israeli/Palestinian border lines were once again redrawn, displacing a few hundred thousand Palestinians. This film tells one small personal story of a mother and her 11 year old son forced into a camp in Jordan. Anxious and distraught, her son takes off for the desert to find his father and ends up taking up with a group of Marxist guerillas. Among its themes, I think this film does a really good job at illustrating what generational displacement can do you young people. Faced with no prospects of a better life and no representation from the governments that control the region they are forced to, violence may end up the most attractive option.

Saturday, May 5

Streamathon - Underseen Americana

Streamathon - Underseen Americana

Underseen Americana (May 2018)

By: Emery Martin-Snyder

I’ve done just enough travelling around this country to realize how possible it is to step off of a plane somewhere and into a completely different world. Different regions have different values and tenets and the people that make this up are even more diverse. Cinema, like any other art form, is created through the societal lens. It can and should serve as a window into this world’s lesser seen landscapes. These are some films that celebrate those little corners of our Nation that most will never experience first-hand.

The Stream

45365 (2010)

Directed by Bill Ross IV & Turner Ross – Streaming on Vimeo

The title refers to the zip code of Sidney, Ohio, the small town that the filmmaking brothers grew up in. This is a documentary without any real narrative. It follows a small judicial election, the high school football season and about a half dozen other small day-to-day dealings of the various locals. The filmmakers never interject, just quietly observe. It’s hard to articulate what works so well here and why this film is so engrossing. It is filmed through an obviously affectionate gaze for the community, warts and all. I don’t know if the audience is supposed to share in that affection but it’s impossible not to appreciate the love on display.

COLUMBUS (2017)

Directed by Kogonada – Streaming on Hulu

In case you didn’t know, Columbus, Indiana is a mecca of modern architecture. If you already did know that, you are likely a student of architecture or you’ve seen this film. I made the point last month that Parker Posey is a national treasure. This film seconds that motion with a small but critical performance. Haley Lu Richardson however is somewhat of a revelation. If you are going to set a film amidst the backdrop of all of these beautiful structures, you better be shooting it with interesting angels and blocking. Cinematographer, Elisha Christian does just that with confidence and grace. This is a melancholy story and the camerawork and score treats its characters and setting with weight and respect.

DOWN BY LAW (1986)

Directed by Jim Jarmusch – Streaming on FilmStruck

The acting trio of John Lurie, Tom Waits and Roberto Benigni probably seems pretty odd for anything other than a Jim Jarmusch film. His specific sensibilities just seem to make it work beautifully. Honestly, I could have picked a number of his films to fit this topic. He has a knack for exploring many of this country’s lesser known settings. In this one, we are treated to the underbelly of New Orleans, Louisiana. The dilapidated motels, back alleys and swamplands are shot in some the most gorgeous and crisp black and white cinematography by Robby Müller. Eighties Arthouse has never looked so good.

THE FLORIDA PROJECT (2017)

Directed by Sean Baker – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video

I think this ended up as my favorite film from last year. It tells the story of the impoverished communities that live in the shadows of the happiest place on Earth. The extended stay motels of Orlando, Florida provide our backdrop for what is ostensibly a heartbreaking story. But to this film’s credit, it never seems to pity its subjects, nor does it glorify them. The film’s heart is in newcomer Brooklynn Prince’s “Moonee” but its soul is found in what may be Willem Dafoe’s best performance ever. And that’s a pretty big deal.

GOOK (2017)

Directed by Justin Chon – Streaming on Netflix

There is no shortage of movies that take place in the City of Angels. This one however, is a few miles and a couple of light years away from “La La Land”. This is a small story taking place in LA’s Koreatown during the Rodney King Riots of ‘92. Written and directed by its star Justin Chon, this film reminds me a lot of the best Spike Lee films from the nineties. This script is far more mature and well-grounded than what most would expect from a young filmmaker.

RIVER OF GRASS (1994)

Directed by Kelly Reichardt – Streaming on Amazon Prime Video & Hulu

This is an unfortunately underseen and underappreciated film that tends to get forgotten amongst the nineties American independent movement. There is really no reason that Kelly Reichardt’s name shouldn’t be mentioned in the same breath of Tarantino, Smith or Sayles. The title refers to its location, a strip of the Florida Everglades not typically camera-ready. The story Reichardt tells here is small, quaint, often times funny and absolutely heartbreaking. Most importantly, I feel that this film is comfortably relatable to the large swaths of us that grew up in the less than picturesque landscapes that are rarely seen on the big screen.